


Surprise! It’s a Boy! (Working Title)

by IJM



Category: General Hospital
Genre: Alternate Universes, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-22
Updated: 2018-11-22
Packaged: 2019-08-27 10:33:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16700833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IJM/pseuds/IJM
Summary: What if Scott learned Bobby was his son when he was still a young child?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Not for profit. No claim of ownership of characters. 
> 
> Alternate Universe. 
> 
> I haven’t thought of a good title yet.

Scotty Baldwin got no pleasure from being called to the principal’s office as a child and he certainly was not happy about being called to the principal’s office as an adult—particularly since it was the office of Franklin Elementary School in Buffalo, New York. He had no connections to Buffalo, but he had been contacted separately by the principal, a social worker, and a police officer. He had been informed he had a son, and they wanted to talk to him about this child. No one would provide any details over the phone.

After he entered the building and told the secretary who he was, she said she would get the principal. Almost immediately, a middle-aged man with dark hair and an athletic build came to introduce himself. “Mr. Baldwin, I am Simon Parker. Thank you for agreeing to meet with us today. We’ll go to the conference room,” he said, expecting to Scotty to follow. 

Scotty was taken aback by the number of people in the room – none of whom were an eight-year-old boy. They went around the table introducing themselves: Anita Renfroe, a psychiatrist; Beverly Gibson, a classroom teacher; Bradley Ingram, a police detective; and Sylvia Lindsey, a social worker with the Department of Child Welfare. 

Scotty politely greeted them all, but said, “I think I’m at a disadvantage here because all of you seem to know something I don’t. You’re under the impression I have a son.”

“Mr. Baldwin, it’s a long story,” Dr. Renfroe led the meeting. “Your son, Bobby, has been having problems in school. That led to a home investigation. The woman who has illegally been raising Bobby bought the child from a woman named Heather Webber who is currently in jail.”

His face must have revealed his thoughts.

“You know Heather Webber?” Dr. Renfroe  asked. 

“Unfortunately, yes. But she never told me we had a child together. What kind of problems is this kid having?” He was obviously at a disadvantage if he had Heather Webber’s DNA.

Miss Gibson answered. “He’s withdrawn to the point that he won’t speak in class. He won’t go outside. He won’t take a restroom break with the class. He doesn’t cause trouble, but he is certainly a troubled child.”

”He sounds like he’s shy,” Scotty replied. “Besides if Heather is his mother...”

”His problems are not genetic, Mr. Baldwin,” Dr. Renfroe told him. “Bobby won’t speak, but he will draw and he will write stories in his daily journal.”

“We have a policy that journals are private, but I was very concerned about Bobby after what happened and the only way I could find out what was bothering him was to invade his privacy,” Miss Gibson explained. “I only regret waiting so long.”

”Is that it?” Scotty asked, noticing a wire bound notebook on the table in front of Detective Ingram.

”It is,” Ingram confirmed. 

“I think we should prepare you to see it,” Mrs. Lindsey told him.

”So what happened that made Miss Gibson read the journal?”

The principal answered. “Bobby snuck a pair of scissors into the bathroom and hacked at his own wrists. The janitor was making his rounds and found Bobby bleeding and trying to inflict more damage to himself. He couldn’t do much with a pair of children’s scissors, but the intent was clear.” 

Scotty was horrified. “You’re telling me that an eight-year-old, a third grader, tried to commit suicide in the school bathroom?”

“I know it’s hard to take in that kind of information,” Dr. Renfroe said. “He was taken to the hospital, Miss Gibson brought the journal, and a home investigation began. Based on his behavior and the injuries found during a complete physical exam, it became evident that Bobby has endured long-term physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.”

“By the woman Heather sold him to?”

“No,” Detective Ingram answered. “She had a live-in boyfriend. He’s in jail now waiting trial, as is Betsy Frank the woman who had Bobby illegally.”

Scotty ran his hand over his face, distraught. “When you say long-term?”

“Approximately five years,” Dr. Renfroe  answered, with no emotion. “The man, Jim Harvey, has been an emergency contact for Bobby since he was in kindergarten. He’s a well respected real estate mogul in the area. No one thought someone like him could be that kind of man.” 

“That’s more than half his life. How is it no one noticed before now?” Scotty was already angry for the injustice this child had endured. 

“Bobby has always been shy, introverted, and artistic.” Mr. Parker told him. “He never misbehaved in class. He was doing fine with academics. He just lacked communication and social skills relative to his peers. There’s a growing body of research on a disorder called autism and we thought, perhaps he was autistic because he didn’t speak very often and doesn’t make eye contact or interact with the other kids.”

“I have evaluated Bobby before,” Dr. Renfroe said. “I gave him a nonverbal IQ test and found he has exceptional intelligence. He’s also above grade level in math and reading. Initially, his mother presented a home life that was perfectly normal. So, we thought an autism ruling was appropriate. But after learning what he’s been going through at home, we don’t believe he is autistic. We think he understandably has emotional problems and fears speaking to or interacting with other people.”

Scotty managed to censor himself from saying it out loud, but he was not thrilled that he suddenly had a child with major problems. Being between wives, he would have a hard time figuring out what to do with the kid on his own. He hoped Lee and Gail could help.

”You have legal rights to this child. His mother never informed you of his existence so you never terminated parental rights,” the social worker explained.

“I understand,” Scotty told her. He didn’t inform her that he was a lawyer. “So, what? Am I supposed to just take him home with me?”

”There’s one more thing,” The detective started.

Scotty thought there were enough “things” about this kid already.

“Bobby’s pictures often depict him with another child and they are always dressed alike. We think it’s possible he has or had a fraternal twin brother, but the boy is nowhere to be found. He’s never been registered for school. Of course we asked Heather Weber and she would not confirm or deny his existence. Bobby was delivered by a midwife, so there’s no hospital record. We don’t know who the other child is, or if he really exists. We want to ensure that if you take responsibility for Bobby, he will be provided counseling. If anything is revealed about this other child, we need to know what lead there is to follow.”

“Of course I will get him counseling,” Scotty told him. “It sounds to me like the school has failed Bobby. He’s been abused by that man the whole time he’s been enrolled here and no one noticed anything? Has he ever talked? Can he talk?”

“Yes, he can.” Mr. Parker told him. “He’s always been shy, but he stopped talking altogether recently. It’s not uncommon for kids to be shy.” It was obvious he was making excuses for the school district employees’ collective failure to recognize the signs of abuse.

”We call this selective mutism,” Dr. Renfroe said. “He absolutely has the ability to speak, but he chooses not to. I think you should look at his journal before we introduce you. You can at least get an idea of what is going on in his mind.” 

Scotty braced himself as he took the notebook. Little Bobby’s mind didn’t sound like a nice place to visit. 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still Alternate Universe

Scotty felt sick after looking through Bobby’s journal. Bobby was clearly artistic and intelligent, but the content of the journal was disturbing. If this was what the child thought about at school, it was no wonder he was shy and fearful. He was living in some version of hell. 

He tried to put that out of his mind because he was going to meet Bobby who was at a clinic. Dr. Renfroe advised him that there was more to Bobby than being a victim and he would benefit from Scotty trying to help him remember or discover those things. 

Scotty watched and listened. Bobby was on the other side of the glass and unaware that anyone could see or hear him. He was sitting on the floor putting together a puzzle. 

“Hey, Bobby,” Dr. Renfroe greeted him and sat on the floor with him. Her voice was soft and kind. Bobby looked at her briefly and went back to his puzzle. His hair was a medium brown and his eyes appeared light, but Scotty couldn’t tell exactly what color they were in the moment he looked up. 

“I have good news, Bobby.”

He looked at her again. Scotty was glad the kid at least understood and responded when spoken to. 

“We found your father—your real father. He didn’t know anything about you, not even that you had been born. That’s why you’ve never met him before.”

Bobby bit his lip, looking at her with skepticism. Maybe there was some Baldwin in him after all. He was cute—kind of small and thin. He looked like he would have to grow into his hands and feet. Maybe 8 was one of those awkward ages. 

“Do you want to meet your father?” Dr. Renfroe asked. “He’s here and he really wants to meet you. Is it alright if he comes in to say hello?” 

Bobby shrugged and Dr. Renfroe took it as an affirmative response. She brought Scotty into the room. 

Scotty felt a bit sick to his stomach. The kid was real. And his. And his responsibility now. And not the least bit enthusiastic about meeting his father. 

“This is Scott Baldwin, your biological father,” Dr. Renfroe told the little boy. 

Bobby looked at him and swallowed, visibly nervous. 

“Hi, Bobby,” Scotty was more nervous looking into that cute, but troubled, kid’s eyes than he had ever been standing before a judge or jury. The boy was both in one and he was sizing him up, looking for flaws, determining if he was trustworthy. For a kid who supposedly avoided eye contact, he was holding his own pretty well. There was definitely a Baldwin streak in there. 

“Let’s all sit down,” Dr. Renfroe suggested. They got comfortable and she said, “Scott, is there anything you want to say to Bobby?”

Bobby looked like he expected Scotty to say something. At the moment, Scotty was relieved that the child did not appear to be afraid of him.

“Bobby, I wish I would have known about you a long time ago. I would have taken care of you and done my best to make sure no one ever hurt you. And I want you to know I will never hurt you, at least not on purpose. I mean, I don’t know how to be a dad. So I might say something stupid.” He thought Bobby smiled, or at least the corner of his mouth twitched. 

“I want you to know I will never hit you. And, I swear to God, I will never, ever touch you or hurt you like that other man did.”

Bobby looked away when he referenced the sexual abuse. 

Scotty tried to get his attention back. “Hey, Bobby, I think it probably hurts to remember what he did. Maybe it’s embarrassing. Maybe it makes you feel scared or like you did something wrong. But, whatever it is that makes you unable to look at me when you think about him, I want you to know that he was wrong, not you. Someone should have kept you safe. No matter what he said or did, you are still a good person and you deserve to be loved and protected. If you’ll let me, I will love you and protect you.” The child was looking at him again. “I want to be your dad. I want you to talk to me about whatever makes you happy or sad or angry, or anything. I’ll be there to keep you safe. And we can do fun stuff like go fishing or watch television or play catch.”

”I can’t catch,” Bobby whispered. 

Dr. Renfroe was clearly shocked that he had spoken to his father so quickly. 

“I can’t either,” Scotty laughed. “Maybe we can learn together. If you want to.” 

“Okay,” Bobby agreed. “You’re not like him.” 

“No, son, I’m not like him at all. Do you want to come live with me in Port Charles?”

Bobby nodded. 

“Then we’ll make that happen,” Scotty promised. “There are complicated things like paperwork that we adults will have to sort out, but I will take you home as soon as I can.” 

 


End file.
